Mattie's POV

"So, how are the children?" I joked to Tino in my best soccer mom voice.

"What?" Tino looked at me with pure confusion. I was about to explain when Lovi butted in and did it for me.

"He's talking about you and your tall fucker of a boyfriend."

"Oh!" Tino flushed."We're not-"

"The hell do you mean you're not dating?"

"I just don't know if he feels the same way."

"What the fuck-"

"Now, now, Lovi," Somehow I'm always being the moderator for these two. "He's got a point." I honestly never understood the dating game. People never really liked me or noticed me and I guess that played apart in why. But I can't understand how people love the anxiety of crushing hard on someone and ultimately having it fail. It's unfair as a whole really. A lot of it sexual most of the time rather than actually caring about someone. Then again my closest experience with anything of the sort was with Lovi and that really doesn't count. Guess I'm just too inexperienced. "But seriously you have to be an idiot to not notice how he feels about you." We were both looking at him now. Essentially pressing him for the truth. He shifted in his chair. We were clearly making him uncomfortable.

"I-I'm just unsure alright!" He stuttered out anxiously. "Can we change the topic already?" I felt kind of bad that we made him uncomfortable. He's too good for that. "L-like, Matthew's deal with that new guy!" Nevermind.

"That's true." Lovi was looking at me accusingly now. "What's the deal with that bastard?"

"I just have a bunch of classes with him, he's pretty fun to talk to actually."

"You don't like him do you?" He narrowed his eyes checking for any flinches or anything on me. I'll admit, Lovi was pretty good at detecting a lie. Thing is that he's never caught me lying to know what exactly I do when I lie.

"Lovi, I've known him for like a week, don't be stupid." To translate my answer, maybe a little. I want to get to know him but nothing more than that. Not enough to determine anything special about him. He is pretty weird and a bit of a mystery. Attractive as hell, I'll admit, but he's seems pretty normal over all. 

"Fine." Lovi sat up straight. "But don't you go being a dumbass."

"I'm not my brother."

"Speaking of your brother." Tino stopped our bickering before it even began. "Why isn't he here today?" I forgot that Tino had a class or two with Al.

"He's sick today."

"Sick or wanted to stay home?" Lovi was always so pessimistic about everything. He was right to be though.

"He pulled an all-nighter for school so our dad let him stay home to cope." Something was off about Al this morning actually. Maybe it was because he was so tired. I'm not sure. I probably shouldn't think too hard into it. He's a simple guy after all.

~

I took my time walking to art. It was close to my last class anyway. I got to notice the huge amount of flyers for the upcoming winter dance in like a month. Not that I really cared but it was an excessive amount of flyers.

I got to art and it seemed magically seeing the walls with something of qaulity. Except my eyes were torn away from the walls the minute I noticed Gilbert  hurriedly painting on a canvas. I walked up to him after I put my bag down on the ground.

"What are you painting?" I asked him, trying to peak over his shoulder.

"Hold on." Was his hurried response. Some strokes later he moved to let me see. "Done!" He smiled.

It was a painting of a piano in a field. Abstract and weird but really well made.

"What does it mean?" I asked him.

"A lot of things." His smile softened. His eyes stayed looking at the painting.

"Like what?"

He shrugged, "I just rememberedthis guy I knew and started painting. He really liked the piano."

"Why the field then?"

"He liked those too." He completely turned back to the painting and picked up the brush again. "It's not done as you can see." It really wasn't. The piano was fully painted but the field seemingly faded after about an inch.

"I'm excited to see it done." I smiled at him. I could tell he was watching me from the corner of his eye because I noticed his lips quirk up slightly more.

"What are you going to paint, anyway?"

"Not sure yet." I sat down in the seat next to him. "I might go the modern art route and just shit on the canvas." He laughed at that.

"Maybe paint someone."

"Perhaps."

"Perhaps?"

"It's a fun word." I shrugged. He looked over to me.

"No," He shook his head. "a fun word is toothbrush not perhaps."

"Why toothbrush?"

"Because it tells you what it is and what it's for."

"Perhaps we do need words like that."

"Perhaps indeed."